1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a protective shield for an electronic cartridge.
2. Background Information
Integrated circuits are typically assembled into packages that are soldered to a printed circuit board. One edge of the printed circuit board may contain a plurality of conductive pads that can be inserted into an electrical connector. The electrical connector can be mounted to a motherboard of a computer system. For example, memory devices are typically packaged onto a printed circuit board that is plugged into a card edge electrical connector. The conductive pads are exposed until the circuit board is plugged into the connector.
The circuit board assembly may be plugged into the connector by an operator at a manufacturing facility or by a consumer. The operator or consumer may come into contact with the exposed conductive pads and create an electrostatic discharge that damages the integrated circuits on the circuit board. It would be desirable to provide a shield for the conductive pads of the printed circuit board. It would also be desirable to assemble such a shield without any tools to reduce the complexity and cost of producing an electronic cartridge.
One embodiment of the present invention is a shield for an electronic cartridge which has a pin that extends from a substrate. The shield may include an arm which extends from a base. The arm may have a finger that engages the pin.